Energy Roadshow Success

The TCCI stated today a second interconnector between Tasmania and mainland Australia was one of the key points of the successful Energy Roadshow over the past two days.

TCCI CEO Michael Bailey said sold-out sessions in Burnie, Launceston and Hobart demonstrated the intense interest in the business community.

“We had a great cross-section of business, from the very small to the very large at all three events,” Mr Bailey said.

“The future of energy generation in Tasmania is in the next 30 years, where billions of dollars will be invested in renewable energy projects.

“The focus will be wind farms, solar power and, of course, pumped hydro.
“What came out of the sessions was a clear need for the second interconnector alongside Basslink, so that Tasmania can supply power to the rest of the Australia.”

Mr Bailey said the TCCI paid tribute to Minister for Energy Guy Barnett for his willingness to engage with the Tasmanian business community and Hydro Tasmania and TasNetworks for their support of the roadshow.

Mr Bailey said the three sessions saw discussion around projects including:

Battery of the Nation – this initiative is about investigating and developing a pathway of future development opportunities - wind, hydropower system expansion including pumped hydro and more transmission and interconnection. Realising this vision would position Tasmania to make a much greater contribution to the National Energy Market (NEM).

Pumped Hydro - Tasmania has a substantial hydropower system already in place, ready for pumped hydro to be added-on, which is rare in Australia. The identified options are near existing hydropower assets, a big advantage in terms of practicality, cost and speed of construction.
Hydro Tasmania will undertake pre-feasibility on 14 sites, to narrow them down to a smaller number of sites, equivalent to about 2500 megawatts of potential.Further interconnection - $20 million has been allocated for a feasibility and business case assessment by TasNetworks and the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).

Wind farms – The Cattle Hill and Granville wind farms are anticipated to take Tasmania’s renewable generation capacity up to 100 per cent.
That’s before UPC Renewables looks to invest in over 1000 megawatts of capacity at Robins Island and Jim’s Plains.

Construction of the 48-turbine Cattle Hill started recently, with the project aiming to be fully operational in 2019. Goldwind is working with its major subcontractors, including Tasmania’s civil construction business Hazell Brothers, to opportunities for local participation during the construction phase of the project.